LankaLibrary Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Flag

"To me the beauty of Ceylon lies not so much in its blue seas and golden beaches, its jungles and its mountain peaks, as in its ancient atmosphere. There is no nation, from Egypt of the Pharaohs to modern Britian, in whose literature this island has not at some time been mentioned by one or other of its many names -- Lanka, Serendib, Taprobane, Cellao, Zellan, to recall a few. History lies buried in its sands, and ghosts of romance lurk among its bastioned rocks, for Lanka is very, very old."

- D. J. G. Hennessy, GREEN AISLES, 1949    

SRI LANKA: A world Heritage centuries before Christ, Sri Lanka was a land throbbing with vitality and a well-ordered civilization. Cities, palaces, reservoirs, parks, temples, monasteries, monuments and works of art bore testament to the character, imagination, culture, philosophy and faith of the people of Sri Lanka, the Resplendent Land. Vestiges of this ancient civilization are abundantly extant today. (Read Heritage)

1,750,000 Year Old Man-Made Bridge between India and Sri Lanka Found

During the last one million years, when humans are known to have existed in various parts of India, Sri Lanka was connected to the sub-continent on numerous occasions. The rise and fall of sea level (due to cold/warm fluctuations in the global climate) determined the periodicities of these connections, the last separation having occurred at ca. 7000 BP. There is secure evidence of settlements in Sri Lanka by 130,000 years ago, probably by 300,000 BP and possibly by 500,000 BP or earlier. Space images taken by NASA reveal a mysterious ancient bridge in the Palk Strait between India and Sri Lanka. The recently discovered bridge currently named as Adam4s Bridge is made of chain of shoals, c.18 mi (30 km) long. (Read more)


Waterfalls of Sri Lanka 

The island is blessed with 103 rivers and streams radiating from the central hills, rushing down rocky precipices forming a number of roaring waterfalls of various shapes and heights, all ending up loosing the momentum at the Indian Ocean.A recent survey conducted and completed on waterfalls in Sri Lanka has revealed the existence of 90 water falls, ranging from 165ft to 465ft in height, in Sabaragamuwa, out of 272 located and identified in the Island. (Read more)


The Finest Island of its size in all world - Marco Polo

Sri Lanka is an island situated in the Indian Ocean, at the base of the Indian Sub-Continent, 880 km north of the equator.Sri Lanka has a pleasant tropical climate. The average temperature of the low lands ranges between 25-30 degrees Celsius. It is a multi-ethnic, multi-religiouscountry with a diverse and rich culture with a total population of 19 million. English is widely spoken and is studied as a compulsory secondary language in school. Sri Lanka's Per Capita GDP is presently US$ 900 - the highest in South Asia and the Literacy rate is 92% - the highest in South Asia and second highest in Asia.

The origin of Sri Lankan dances goes back to immemorial times of aboriginal tribes and "yakkas" (devils). According to a Sinhalese legend, Kandyan dances originate, 2500 years ago, from a magic ritual that broke the spell on a bewitched king.


Sri Lanka has an extensive number of indigenous dishes, fruits and spices. Over the last centuries Lankan cuisine is complemented with Indian, Chinese, Malay, Arabian and European tastes. Today, even with the presence American taste in Colombo represented by McDonalds, Pizza Hut and Kentucky Fried Chicken, the average Sri Lankan still continues to eat traditional food at home. Rice and curry still comprises the main meal in almost every Sri Lankan household. (Read more)


SIGIRIYA

Lion Rock, the Citadel of Sigiriya.

Nothing in Sri Lanka captures the imagination more than a 200 meter lump of granite that rises starkly above the flat central plains. Sigiriya has it all -- a blood-stained history full of intrigue, astonishing frescos of bare-breasted maidens painted 15 centuries ago, a wall covered in graffiti that is more than 1,000 years old and, to top it all, Asia's oldest surviving landscape garden.(Read more)

Biodiversity  remarkable high proportion of endemic species. 23% of the flowering plants and 16% of the mammals in the island are endemic. Sinharaja, our great tropical rain forest, by all accounts is a vast repository of national wealth. [Yala Leopards! ]Yala is now well recognised as one of the best parks in the world to observe  leopards.

Sri Dalada Maligawa, which enshrines the Tooth Relic of the Buddha, is the holiest shrine in the entire Buddhist world and to the people of Sri Lanka. According to tradition the Tooth Relic was brought to Sri Lanka when King Kirti Sri Meghavarna (301-328) was ruling in Anuradhapura, by a princess from Kalinga named Hemamali, securely wrapped in her tresses(Read more)

 Sri Lankan AboriginesVedda Chief Tissahamy -Veddhas -

"I was born in the forest. My ancestors come from here. We are the forest beings, and I want to live and die here. And even if I were reborn only as a fly or an ant, I would still be happy so long as I knew I would come back to live here in the forest." - Uru Warige Tissahamy (Read more)

MYTHS & MYSTERIES

"The island of Sri Lanka has been a favorite haunt of aliens, extra terrestrials, gods, devas, angels, sky dwellers, demons, deities whichever way you describe them. Our chronicles, traditions, folklore, prehistoric cave drawings, archaeological evidence and ancient traveler's' records testify that there have been strange beings living in this island from time immemorial." There were and there are Mountains, Hills, buildings and even plants with full of mysteries, power and wisdom which are beyond human understanding.  (Read more)

> 10,000,000 visitors from 176 countries!. > 60.000 Hits a day! Thank you for visiting Virtual Library Sri Lanka.

@LankaLibrary Sri Lanka 1995-2015

ECO FRENDLY TOURISM
WILD LIFE
Experts believe that at the turn of the 19th Century there were 20,000 elephants in Sri Lanka. The present population is less than 3,500 elephants.(Read more